Trump picks Treasury's David Malpass to head World Bank

David Malpass, a top Treasury official, will be nominated for president of the World Bank by President Trump on Wednesday in an effort to shake up the international institution, a senior administration official told Axios.

Malpass, 62, Treasury's under secretary for international affairs, was a Trump campaign economic adviser, and has worked on development issues going back to the Reagan administration.

He replaces Jim Yong Kim, who resigned effective Feb. 1.

The announcement is being held until Wednesday because the State of the Union address is Tuesday.

Malpass can be expected to give the U.S. a more assertive role in the bank.

Malpass wants to make the development lender "more effective," and for the United States to be regarded as a "constructive, growth-oriented" force, in keeping with its historic role as the bank's largest donor, the official said.

He has criticized multilateral institutions like the World Bank as being "intrusive" and "entrenched," CNBC reported.

Our thought bubble, from chief financial correspondent Felix Salmon: Malpass has fewer qualifications than other contenders. And Trump supporters are scarce at the World Bank, to say the least. So his arrival is likely to be met with skepticism.

Malpass also worked in the administration of President George H. W. Bush, and was chief economist at Bear Stearns.

From his official bio: "Malpass has been a frequent contributor to the op-ed section of The Wall Street Journal and wrote a regular column in Forbes magazine."

"He holds a Bachelor's degree in physics from Colorado College, an MBA from the University of Denver, and studied international economics at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service."

He unsuccessfully sought the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in New York in 2010.